Tire Question

[Dariolite]

Just a general question,
I pick up a 2002 Ford Explorer, have had it for 2yrs.. Love it... well its time for new tires... it came with P235/70 R16's... stopped at a small tire shop.. they were telling me for better mileage and for the vehicle I should go with P255/70 R16's.. I am looking for tire that might improve my city and open hwy mileage.

 

[swshawaii]

How is it possible for a wider, taller, and heavier tire to give you better mileage? :scratch: Time to find another tire shop.

Specification Sidewall Radius Diameter Circumference Revs/Mile Difference
235/70-16 6.5in 14.5in 29.0in 91.0in 697 0.0%
255/70-16 7.0in 15.0in 30.1in 94.4in 671 3.8%

 

[Dariolite]

Thank you swshawii, I did think to myself that it seemed like a hard sell.. thank again.

Dariolite.

 

[OffTrac]

It's obvious which tire they have in stock or have too many of.

 

[swshawaii]

In all fairness, a taller tire would lower RPM's at highway speeds, but lose low end torque.

http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/gearandtirechart.html

 

[chazzone]

Depending on how you drive, and what gears the truck has, a taller tire might help mileage. I've been running 235 75 15 Michellin LTX AT2 on my BII. they are 3 inches taller than stock, and I average 19 mpg, and have gotten low 20's consistently on the highway (with 5" of total lift...). I also have a manual transmission and 3.73 gears, and I don't race.

I'd look at your final drive ratio and see if you have the gears to make it work.